Self-adhering disposable protector

ABSTRACT

A self-adhering, disposable protector including a moisture-proof outer backing defining a barrier to prevent contact of body fluid with a wearer&#39;&#39;s garment. A moisture absorbing pad is secured to the backing, being formed by an absorbent filler material, and a hydrophobic inner shield covers the side of the filler material opposite from the backing 2, being adapted for contact with the wearer&#39;&#39;s skin. A non-continuous overlapping adhesive means on the shield and backing to secure the protector to the wearer&#39;&#39;s skin. The pad is heat sealed to the backing and shield such that the inner shield and backing may shift relative to one another. The filler material is deformable to provide a shearing action therein upon shifting of the inner shield with respect to the backing, and thus, enable movement of the various parts of the protector relative to one another to minimize the internal stresses within the protector and reduce the possibility of detachment of the adhesive means of the protector from the wearer&#39;&#39;s skin during normal movement by the wearer. In addition, the fillter material may be treated with a deodorizing agent, and the inner shield defines a barrier through which the body fluid, such as perspiration, may pass to be absorbed by the filler material while maintaining the deodorizing agent out of contact with the wearer&#39;&#39;s skin to maintain the wearer&#39;&#39;s skin in a dry condition, as well as, prevent possible irritation thereto.

United States Patent [191 Kost [451 May 27, 1975 [5 1 SELF-ADHERINGDISPOSABLE PROTECTOR [76] Inventor: Rosemary J. Kost, 8231 Broadmoor,

Mentor, Ohio 44060 [22] Filed: Sept. 12, 1974 [211 App]. No.: 505,479'

Primary ExaminerAlfred R. Guest Attorney, Agent, or FirmTeare, Teare &Sammon [57] Y ABSTRACT A self-adhering, disposable protector including amoisture-proof outer backing defining a barrier to prevent contact ofbody fluid with a wearers garment. A moisture absorbing pad is securedto the backing, being formed by an absorbent filler material, and ahydrophobic inner shield covers the side of the filler material oppositefrom the backing 2, being adapted for contact with the wearer's skin. Anon-continuous overlapping adhesive means on the shield and backing tosecure the protector to the wearers skin. The pad is heat sealed to thebacking and shield such that the inner shield and backing may shiftrelative to one another. The filler material is deformable to provide ashearing action therein upon shifting of the inner shield with respectto the backing, and thus, enable movement of the various parts of theprotector relative to one another to minimize the internal stresseswithin the protector and reduce the possibility of detachment of theadhesive means of the protector from the wearers skin during normalmovement by the wearer. In addition, the fillter material may be treatedwith a deodorizing agent, and the inner shield defines a barrier throughwhich the body fluid, such as perspiration, may pass to be absorbed bythe tiller material while maintaining the deodorizing agent out ofcontact with the wearers skin to maintain the wearers skin in a drycondition, as well as, prevent possible irritation thereto.

14 Claims, 17 Drawing Figures PMENI m wz 7 i975 SHEET 1 OF 4 FIG:

l SELF-ADHERING DISPOSABLE PROTECTOR BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Thepresent invention relates to disposable; absorbent protectors. and moreparticularly to protectors adapted to be applied directly to the skin ofa person for absorbing body fluids, such as perspiration, and to preventthe perspiration from contacting the garment worn by the person whilepreventing irritation to the skin of the person.

Disposable protectors have been employed for some time and have beenfabricated from various materials which are adapted to be applieddirectly to the skin of the wearer. In such former protectors, apressure sensitive adhesive material has been employed for detachablysecuring the protector to the wearers skin.

Although such former protectors have met with a certain degree ofsuccess, they have not been considered to be entirely satisfactory. Moreparticularly, certain problems have been encountered in regard tomaintaining these former protectors attached to the wearers skin.Further, these problems have resulted primarily because these formerprotectors were not designed to accommodate any substantial movementbetween their respective parts, and further, were not designed to fullyutilize the elastic characteristics of the materials from which theywere made. Still further, these former protectors have not been capableof sufficiently transferring perspiration from the wearers skin to thepad such that the wearer has a comfortable feeling of dryness in thearea to which the protector has been applied. In still other instances,the absorbent material of the former protectors has been treated with adeodorizing agent which, when maintained in contact with the wearersskin has often caused irritation thereto by allowing the deodorizingagent to contact the skin of the wearer.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention contemplates providing animproved disposable garment protector which is adapted to be secureddirectly to the skin of the wearer in the area of the underarm. Moreparticularly, the protector includes a moisture-proof backing adaptedfor attachment directly to the skin of a wearer, and which defines abarrier to prevent perspiration from contacting the wearers garment inthe area of the underarm. A moisture absorbing pad is secured to oneside of the backing for absorbing the perspiration. The pad includes anabsorbent filler material and a hydrophobic inner shield which isdisposed on and covers one side of the filler material opposite from thebacking for contact with the wearers skin. The inner shield has itsperiphery wrapped around the periphery of the filler material and issecured thereto on its opposite side for engagement with the backing.The backing and inner shield are secured to the opposite sides of thepad along transversely extending lines, such as by heat sealing or thelike, which enables the inner shield to shift relative to the backing,and thus, provides a shearing action within the tiller material suchthat portions of the protector may move relative to one another whentension and compression are applied thereto upon movement of the wearer.More particularly, the backing includes outwardly projecting tabs whichinclude an adhesive material for attaching the tabs to the wearers bodyfor holding the inner shield in confronting relation to the wearersunderarm. The inner shield is further provided with an adhesive materialwhich extends along its periphery for also attaching the innershield tothe wearers body for absorbing perspiration therefrom. The adhesivematerial on the inner shield is non-continuous, having an adhesive stripalong one peripheral edge and another adhesive strip along the oppositeperipheral edge such that the strips may move relative to one another.Further, the adhesive strips on the inner shield are spaced from, butoverlap the adhesive material on the tabs to enclose the area of thewearers body covered by the inner shield while allowing the tabs to moverelative to the inner shield when forces are applied to the backing orinner shield as a result of the body movements of the wearer. Inaddition, the inner shield is of a porous, hydrophobic material whichenables the perspiration to pass therethrough and be absorbed by thefiller material. The backing is of a non-porous material and acts as abarrier to prevent the perspiration absorbed by the filler material tocontact the wearers garment. The filler material may be treated with adeodorizing agent, and the inner shield provides a barrier to preventthe deodorant from contacting the wearers skin, and thus, prevent thelikelihood of the deodorizing agent from causing an irritation to thewearers skin.

As can seen from the foregoing, there is provided a novel disposablegarment protector which is extremely safe and effective in preventingperspiration from coming into contact with the garment of the wearer, aswell as, in absorbing the perspiration from the wearers skin to providea feeling of dryness. More particularly, the garment protector iscapable of internal movement such that forces applied to the protectorare more readily absorbed so as to lessen the likelihood of theprotector becoming detached from the wearers body during use thereof.Still further, the protector provides for deodorizing of theperspiration and effectively prevents contact of the wearers skindirectly with the deodorizing agent or the absorbed perspiration so asto reduce the possibility of irritation to the wearers skin.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing atypical application of the protector of the present invention as appliedto the skin of a wearer adjacent the arm pit when the arm is in theraised position;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the protector illustrated in FIG. 1 asapplied to the wearer when the arm is in the lower position and theprotector is folded between its ends;

FIG. 3 is a perspective assembly view of the protector of the presentinvention;

FIG. 4 is a plan view of the inner side of the assembled pad of theprotector of the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a plan view of the inner side of the protector of the presentinvention;

FIG. 6 is a plan view of the outer side of the protector of the presentinvention;

FIG. 7 is a transverse sectional view taken along the lines 7-7 of FIG.6;

FIGS. 8 and 9 are diagrammatic side elevation views showing thelengthwise shifting and shearing action in the protector of the presentinvention;

FIGS. 10 and 11 are diagrammatic inner plan views showing the lengthwiseshifting and shearing action in the protector of the present invention;

FIGS. 12 and 13 are diagrammatic end elevation views showing thewidthwise shifting and shearing action in the protector of the presentinvention;

FIGS. 14 and 15 are diagrammatic inner plan views showing the widthwiseshifting and shearing action in the protector of the present invention;

FIG. 16 is a diagrammatic inner plan view showing the deformablecharacteristics of the protector of the present invention when in theopen or unfolded condition shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 17 is a perspective view showing the elastic characteristics of theprotector of the present invention when in the folded condition as shownin FIG. 2.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Referring now again to FIG. 1,the protector of the present invention is illustrated, generally at 1,in FIG. 1, being adapted for attachment to the body of a wearer Wadjacent the underarm. Referring also to FIG. 2, the protector 1 is of alayered construction including a garment shield layer in the form of abacking 2 which defines a barrier to prevent contact of the wearersgarment with the perspiration from the underarm, and an absorbent pad 4which is secured to the backing 2 which is adapted for contact with theskin of the wearer to absorb perspiration therein. The backing 2includes attachment portions in the form of tabs 6 and 8 for attachingthe protector l to the wearers body, such that when the wearers arm A islowered, the protector 1 will be folded over on itself as indicated inFIG. 2. The pad 4 is formed by an absorbent filler material 10 which iscovered on one side by a skin shield layer in the form of an innershield 12 and on the other side by the backing 2. The inner shield 12 isof a porous construction to allow perspiration to pass therethrough intothe absorbent filler material. Thus, the perspiration will be drawn awayfrom the wearers skin and absorbed by the absorbent material to providea dry, comfortable feeling in the underarm area when the protector is inthe applied position. Further, when the absorbent material 10 is treatedwith a deodorizing agent, the inner shield 12 will serve to maintain thedeodorizing agent out of contact with the skin of the wearer so as toprevent the likelihood of irritation thereto.

Referring now to FIGS. 3, and 4 to 6, the backing 2 may be of anysuitable configuration, but in the preferred form has a generallyovular-shaped central support portion 13. The tabs 6 and 8 are formedintegral with the support portion 13 and project outwardly from itsopposite ends in the lengthwise direction thereof. The backing 2 may bemade of any suitable fibrous or non-fibrous sheet material which iscustomarily used in making adhesive tapes. More particularly, plasticfilms or cloth materials having a certain degree of elasticity arepreferred to non-woven paper webs or tissues. An example of a suitablebacking material is described in U.S. Pat. No. 2,747,503 issued to T.Doyle, although there are other numerous types of synthetic or naturalmaterial which could be utilized to carry out the present invention.

The tabs 6 and 8 are provided with a curved periphery so as to reducetension on the wearers skin and to maximize the elasticity of thebacking. As shown best in FIG. 6, the support portion 13 is of anon-perforated construction, whereas the tabs 6 and 8 may be perforated,to enable the skin to breath in the area covered by the tabs. As shownin FIG. 5, the tabs 6 and 8 are coated on one side, such as their innerside, with an adhesive material, as at 16, for attaching the tabs 6 and8 to the skin of the wearer. As shown, the adhesive material 16 isapplied so as to form an inner curved edge 15 which generally conformsto the confronting curved edge surface 14 of the pad 4. Preferably, theedge 15 is spaced a distance A, such as approximately 1% of an inch,from the confronting pad edge 14 so as to allow the pad to move relativeto the backing 4 without sticking to the tabs 6 and 8, so will bedescribed more fully hereinafter. The adhesive material 16 should be ofthe pressure sensitive type made from an aggressively tackywater-insoluble material which is non-irritating to the human skin.Examples of suitable adhesives which could beemployed in the presentinvention are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,734,503; 2,884,126; or3,121,021.

Preferably, the absorbent pad 4 has a configuration which generallyconforms to the ovular configuration of the support portion 13 of thebacking 2. Preferably, the filler material 10 of the pad 4 is made of afibrous, non-woven sheeted material, such as those described in U.S.Pat. No. 2,923,298 issued to Dockstader, et al. Of course, there arenumerous other absorbent materials, both fibrous and cellular, whichwould be acceptable for use in the present invention without departingfrom the scope and intent thereof. More particularly, the inner shield12 may be made of an absorbent material such that the pad is made ofsuperimposed layers of material having varying absorbency withoutdeparting from the invention. When desired, the filler material 10 maybe impregnated with a neutralizing agent, a deodorant or ananti-perspirant substance to eliminate the possibility of any odorswhich may result from use of the protector 1 over a long period of time.There are numerous agents, deodorants or angi-perspirants which could beemployed for use in the invention. For example, the anti-perspirant soldunder the trademark Mitchum by the Mitchum-Thayer Corporation would beacceptable.

As best seen in FIGS. 3 and 4, the inner shield 12 is secured to thefiller material 10 to form the assembled pad 4. The inner shield 12 maybe of any compliant, soft, porous hydrophobic or non-woven fabric sheetor web. The typical example of one type of non-woven fabric sheet whichis considered suitable for the present invention is one which comprises1.5 to 3 denier rayon and contains approximately 20% to 35%thermoplastic binder (as, for example, copolymers of an ester of acrylicacid, such as is sold by the Rohm and Haas Company and identified asB-l5) and having a weight of about 15 to 19 grams per square yard. Theporosity of the inner shield 12 enables the perspiration to passtherethrough so as to be absorbed by the filler material 10 while thewearers skin is kept out of contact with the filler material 10, andthus, the perspiration and any deodorant or anti-perspirant substancescontained therein, thereby reducing the possibility of irritation to thewearers skin. Further, such construction serves to remove any excessiveamount of perspiration from the wearers skin such that the portionremaining is-readily evaporated resulting in the wearers skin beingsubstantially dry, and thus, gives the wearer a more comfortable andconfident feeling.

The inner shield 12 has a configuration which generally conforms to theconfiguration of the filler material 10. In the form shown, thev innershield 12 has transverse dimensions which are greater than thecorresponding transverse dimensions of the tiller material such that,when it is laid on and centered with respect to the filler material 10,its entire peripheral edge, as at 18, will project beyond the entireperipheral edge 17 of the tiller materiallO. The inner shield 12 isprovided with slits 19 which extend inwardly from the peripheral edge 18to enable the inner shield 12 to be neatly wrapped aroundthe peripheralside edge 17 of the filler material 10. More particularly, the slits 19extend inwardly from the peripheral edge 18 and form tabs 21 along theperiphery of the inner shield 12. The slits 19 may extend inwardly so asto terminate along an imaginary line 22 which defines an oval havingtransverse dimensions which are generally equal to or slightly largerthan the corresponding transverse dimension of the filler material 10.

As seen best in FIGS. 5 and'6, the assembled pad 4 is centered withrespect to the backing 2. The tabs 21 may be suitably secured, such asby a suitable adhesive, heat sealing or the like, adjacent the innerside 26 of the filler material 10 (FIG. 7) to hold the inner shield 12firmly in position in the assembled condition of the pad 4. As best seenin FIG. 5, the outer side 25 of the tiller material 10 is secured, suchas by heat sealing or the like, to the inner shield 12, along lines,such as at 29, which extend generally transversely of one another, suchas at an angle a, and diagonally across the entire width of the innershield 12. Likewise, the backing 2 is secured to the inner side 26 ofthe filler material, along lines, such as at 30 (FIG. 6), which extendgenerally transversely of one another, such as at an angle b, which issubstantially larger than the angle a, and which lines extend diagonallyacross the entire width of the backing 2 covering the inner side 26.Preferably, the lines 29 and 30 intersect one another at approximatelythe geometrical center of the backing 2 and inner shield 12,respectively, for uniform strength over the entire protector, as well ascontribute to maximizing and utilizing the elastic characteristics ofthe backing 2 and enableit to be subjected to deformation and stressingin substantially all directions, as will be more fully discussedhereinafter.

Referring now to FIGS. 3 and 5, the inner shield 12 is provided with anadhesive material for attaching the pad 4 to the wearers skin so as toenable movement relative to the tabs 6 and 8. More particularly, theadhesive material is provided in the form of strips 31 and 32 whichextend along the lengthwise edges of the pad 4 such that the distal endsof the strips 31 and 32 terminate in spaced apart relation from oneanother, such as a distance B, which is less than the width, such as thedistance C, of the tabs 6 and 8. By this arrangement, the adhesivestrips 31 and 32 overlap the adhesive substance on the tabs 6 and 8,such as indicated by the dimension D, so that the pad is substantiallysealed around its periphery but still enables the strips 31 and 32 tomove relative to one another, as well as relative to the tabs 6 and 8.Further, the spacing A between the tabs 6 and 8 and the pad 4, and thespacing B between the distal ends of the strips 31 and 32 provide ameans for venting the area of the wearers skin covered by the pad 4 tofacilitate and maintain the wearers skin in a comfortably dry condition,as well as, enable the aforesaid movement which willbe more fullyunderstood hereinafter.

Having now fully discussed the structural arrangement of the protector1, the operation of the pad can best be understood when discussed inreference to FIGS. 8 to 17. In general, the protector 1 can be said tohave both a shifting and a shearing action to enable its component partsto move relative to one another to reduce the likelihood of the pad frombeing removed from the wearers skin during use thereof. It

should be understood that the following description is presented forillustrative purposes only, and that there are a substantial number ofdifferent directions or movements which the protector 1 could undergo,but the discussion will be limited to the basic movements with theunderstanding that it would be clear to one skilled in the art thatrelative movement of the components could occur in many otherdirections.

In FIG. 8, the protector 1 is shown in its nondistorted or unstressedcondition. FIG. 9 illustrates relative movement of the pad 4 withrespect to the backing 2. More particularly, should the tabs 6 and 8 besecured to the wearers skin, and a force is applied to the inner shield12, such as in the direction indicated by the arrow 35, the innersurface 33 of the inner shield 12 will be forced to shift, such as adistance E in its general plane in the direction of the arrow 35 in adirection generally parallel to the backing 2. Likewise, should theforce on the inner shield 12 be in a lengthwise direction, reverse tothe arrow 35, the inner surface 33 will shift in the opposite directionrelative to the backing 2. As the inner shield 12 are secured to theopposite sides of the filler material 10 which comprises the pad 4, thiscreates a shearing effect, within the filler material 10 such that thereis a gradient of shifting throughout the thickness of the fillermaterial, as indicated by the shear lines at 37, allowing the outer faceto shift relative to the inner face thereof. The effects of thislengthwise shifting and shearing action in the protector 4 is stillbetter seen in FIGS. 10 and 11. As shown, the adhesive strips 31 and 32,which are attached to the wearers skin, are free to move relative to thetabs 6 and 8, not only because of the shearing action in the fillermaterial 10, but also because the backing is elastic and can stretchover its entire area, and more particularly, between the lines 30 (FIG.6) and the tabs 6 and 8, such as at 38, to allow the strips 31 and 32 tomove relative to the tabs, such as 6, when a force is applied thereto,such as in the direction of the arrow 35. Thus, a portion of the wearersskin attached to the adhesive strips 31 and 32 can move relative toanother portion attached to the tabs 6 and 8 without creating unduestress within the protector l, reducing the likelihood of detachment ofthe respective adhesive portions from the wearers skin when suchmovement occurs.

The widthwise movement of the protector 1 is illustrated in FIGS. 12 and13. As shown, when a force is applied to the inner shield 12, such as inthe direction of the arrow 36, the inner surface 33 may shift generallyparallel to the backing 2, resulting in a shearing action within thefiller member 10, as indicated by the shear lines at 39, in the samemanner described with respect to FIGS. 8 and 9 above. Accordingly, andreferring to FIGS. 14 and 15, the adhesive strips 31 and 32 can shift,such as a distance F, in the direction of the arrow 36 relative to thetabs 6 and 8 in a widthwise direction of the protector 1. Thus, the tabs6 and 8 may remain affixed to one portion of the wearers skin,

while another portion of the wearers skin attached to the adhesivestrips 31 and 32 may move relative to that portion attached to the tabs6 and 8, thus reducing the stress in the overall pad and the likelihoodof detachment of the wearers skin from any one of the adhesive portionsthereof.

In addition to the linear lengthwise and widthwise movement shown inFIGS. 8 to 15, FIG. 16 shows other basic moves which can be made by thecomponent parts of the protector 1. More particularly, the protector 1is illustrated in the non-distorted or non-stressed condition in solidlines. Should, for some reason, a torquing action be applied to theadhesive strips 31 and 32 such that the force on one adhesive strip isforced by the wearers skin, to be moved in one lengthwise direction,such as indicated by the arrow 40, and when a force is applied to theadhesive strip 32, such as in a direction indicated by the arrow at 41,resulting in a torquing action on the pad 4, the one adhesive strip 31can move in the direction of the arrow 40, such as indicated by thephantom lines at 31, and the other adhesive strip 32 can move in theopposite lengthwise direction in the direction of the arrow 43, asindicated by the phantom lines at 32, while the tabs 6 and 8 can remainrelatively stationary. Likewise, when a force is applied to the adhesivestrip 31, such as in a direction indicated by the arrow 41, and a forceis applied to the adhesive strip 32, such as indicated by the arrow 44,the strips 31 and 32 can move apart from one another in the widthwisedirection of the protector 1, such as indicated by the phantom lines at31 and 32, as the result of the shearing capabilities of the fillermaterial and the elastic characteristics of the inner shield and backing2. In addition, when tension is applied between the tabs 6 and 8, theycan move relative to one another, as indicated by the phantom lines at 6and 8, or independently relative to the center of the pad 4 as at 45. Ascan be seen, by the foregoing arrangement, the strips 31 and 32 are freeto move relative to one another and relative to the tabs 6 and 8.Likewise, the tabs 6 and 8 are free to move relative to one another, aswell as relative to the strips 31 and 32 when forces are applied to thevarious parts of the protector by the wearers skin as the result of themovement of the wearer.

In FIG. 17, the protector 1 is shown in the folded over condition as itwould appear when the wearers arm is in the lowered condition, as alsoshown in FIG. 2. As shown in FIG. 2, the shearing capabilities of thepad 4 allow the filler material 10 to expand at the point where theprotector 1 is folded, whereas tension could be applied to the adhesivestrip 32 which causes opposed tension forces to be applied along theadhesive strip 32, resulting in an outward shearing force within thefiller material 10 toward its opposite ends. This is diagrammaticallyillustrated by the angular stress lines at 47 within the filler material10. Even under these conditions, the tabs 6 and 8 are free to moveoutwardly with respect to the pad 4 to relieve the tension within theprotector 1 when the wearers arm is moved to the position shown. As bestshown in FIG. 17, the wearers arm, when in the lowered position, willmove back and forth relative to the wearers body, such as indicated bythe arrows 53 and 52. Of course, this type of movement will occurwhenever the wearers hand is moved toward the front or rear of his bodyand probably most frequently when the wearer is walking. In any event,such a movement on the part of the wearer could result in the foldedportion of the inner shield 12 adjacent the tab 8 being shifted in thedirection of the arrow 52 relative to the backing 2, whereas, the innershield 12 on the folded end of the protector 1 adjacent the tab 6 couldbe pulled in the direction of the arrow 53 relative to the backing 2. Ofcourse, the backing 2 adjacent the tab 6 could move slightly in thedirection of the arrow 53, but the inner shield would tend to move agreater distance as indicated by the shear lines at 57. Likewise, theinner shield 12 adjacent the tab 8 would move a greater distance in thedirection of the arrow 52 than would the backing portion adjacent thetab 8 as indicated by the stress lines at 58. Thus, the inner shield 12is capable of a multi-directional movement with respect to the center 45of the pad, which clearly is understandable in view of the capability ofthe inner shield to move in both the lengthwise and widthwise directionas described in FIGS. 8 to 15. Again, when tension is applied betweenone of the tabs, such as 8, and either one or both of the strips, suchas 31 and 32, the backing 2 can stretch, as at 59 in FIG. 17, enablingmovement of the tab 8 in the lengthwise direction of the protector 1.Thus, the shifting and shearing action within the protector 1 can occurin any combination of both lengthwise and widthwise movements of theadhesive portions of the protector 1 to accommodate any movement made bythe wearer so as to greatly reduce the likelihood of the protector 1from becoming detached from the wearers body.

Although the protector 1 of the present invention has been described inconnection with its use as an underarm perspiration absorber, it is tobe understood and should be quite obvious to those skilled in the artthat the pad, with only minor variations, could be effectively used formany different types of applications. For example, the pad could be usedas a surgical dressing for covering wounds resulting from accidents orincisions from an operation, and particularly, those wounds andincisions where considerable fluid is issuing from the wound orincision. In this regard, the protector could be applied to any portionof the human body in the manner heretofore described to effectivelyresist removal from the wearers body, as well as, prevent irritation tothe wearers skin.

I claim:

1. An absorbent protector comprising,

a flexible, resilient backing,

a pad attached to said backing for absorbing body fluid therein,

said backing including attachment portions projecting outwardly fromopposite sides thereof and beyond said pad,

adhesive means on said backing and said pad for securing said protectorto a wearers skin,

said adhesive means on said backing including an adhesive substance onsaid attachment portions spaced from said pad, and

said adhesive means on said pad including an adhesive substanceextending along the peripheral edges thereof between said attachmentportions for attaching said pad to the wearers skin independent of saidattachment portions such that said backing may shift relative to saidpad in the applied position of said protector to accommodate movement ofthose portions of the wearers body attached to said protector by saidadhesive substance.

2. A protector in accordance with claim 1 wherein,

said adhesive material on said pad comprises elongated. spaced strips,and

said strips have their opposite distal ends disposed in spacedoverlapping relations to the adhesive material on said attachmentportions to enable relative movement therebetween.

3. A protector in accordance with claim 1, wherein said backing isattached to said pad along lines which extend transversely to oneanother to enable said backing to move relative to said pad.

4. A protector in accordance with claim 3, wherein said lines extenddiagonally across said backing to enable the material of said backing tostretch and shift laterally of said pad and enable said attachmentportions to move relative to said pad reducing the likelihood of thedetachment of said adhesive layers from the wearers body.

5. A protector in accordance with claim 1, wherein said pad is made of adeformable, absorbent material capable of an internal shearing action toenable said backing adjacent said one side of said pad to shift relativeto the opposite side of said pad.

6. A protector in accordance with claim 5, wherein said pad includes ahydrophobic inner shield covering the opposite side of said absorbentmaterial from said backing to separate said absorbent material from saidwearers skin while enabling said fluid to pass therethrough into saidabsorbent material.

7. A protector in accordance with claim 6, wherein said absorbentmaterial is treated with a deodorizing agent, and

said inner shield defines a barrier between said absorbent material andthe wearers skin to keep the deodorizing agent out of contact with thewearers skin and to maintain the wearers skin in a dry condition.

8. A protector in accordance with claim 6, wherein said inner shield isformed from a material having a configuration conforming to theconfiguration of said absorbent material,

the transverse dimensions of said inner shield are greater than thecorresponding dimensions of said absorbent material, and

the peripheral portion of said inner shield is wrapped around theperipheral edge of said absorbing material and attached to saidabsorbent material to form a unitary structure.

9. A protector in accordance with claim 6, wherein said inner shieldoverlaps said one side of said absorbent material,

said overlap is secured to said absorbent material to form a unitarystructure, and

said one side of said pad on which said overlap is secured is secured tosaid backing.

10. A protector in accordance with claim 6, wherein said inner shield issecured to said'pad on the side opposite from said backing along lineswhich extend transversely of one another.

11. A protector in accordance with claim 10, wherein said lines alongwhich said absorbent material is secured to said inner shield extenddiagonally of said absorbent material.

12. A protector in accordance with claim 10, wherein said lines alongwhich said inner shield is secured to said absorbent material define asmaller angle with respect to the lengthwise axis of said pad than otherlines securing said backing to said pad.

13. A protector in accordance with claim 1, wherein said backingcomprises a substantially moistureproof sheet material defining abarrier between said pad and the wearers garment to prevent perspirationfrom coming in contact with the wearers garment.

14. A protector in accordance with claim 1, wherein ,said pad isgenerally ovular in configuration, and

said backing includes a central support portion having a configurationwhich generally conforms to the configuration of said pad such that saidprotector conforms generally to the shape of the arm pit

1. An absorbent protector comprising, a flexible, resilient backing, apad attached to said backing for absorbing body fluid therein, saidbacking including attachment portions projecting outwardly from oppositesides thereof and beyond said pad, adhesive means on said backing andsaid pad for securing said protector to a wearer''s skin, said adhesivemeans on said backing including an adhesive substance on said attachmentportions spaced from said pad, and said adhesive means on said padincluding an adhesive substance extending along the peripheral edgesthereof between said attachment portions for attaching said pad to thewearer''s skin independent of said attachment portions such that saidbacking may shift relative to said pad in the applied position of saidprotector to accommodate movement of those portions of the wearer''sbody attached to said protector by said adhesive substance.
 2. Aprotector in accordance with claim 1 wherein, said adhesive material onsaid pad comprises elongated, spaced strips, and said strips have theiropposite distal ends disposed in spaced overlapping relations to theadhesive material on said attachment portions to enable relativemovement therebetween.
 3. A protector in accordance with claim 1,wherein said backing is attached to said pad along lines which extendtransversely to one another to enable said backing to move relative tosaid pad.
 4. A protector in accordance with claim 3, wherein said linesextend diagonally across said backing to enable the material of saidbacking to stretch and shift laterally of said pad and enable saidattachment portions to move relative to said pad reducing the likelihoodof the detachment of said adhesive layers from the wearer''s body.
 5. Aprotector in accordance with claim 1, wherein said pad is made of adeformable, absorbent material capable of an internal shearing action toenable said backing adjacent said one side of said pad to shift relativeto the opposite side of said pad.
 6. A protector in accordance withclaim 5, wherein said pad includes a hydrophobic inner shield coveringthe opposite side of said absorbent material from said backing toseparate said absorbent material from said wearer''s skin while enablingsaid fluid to pass therethrough into said absorbent material.
 7. Aprotector in accordance with claim 6, wherein said absorbent material istreated with a deodorizing agent, and said inner shield defines abarrier between said absorbent material and the wearer''s skin to keepthe deodorizing agent out of contact with the wearer''s skin and tomaintain the wearer''s skin in a dry condition.
 8. A protector inaccordance with claim 6, wherein said inner shield is formed from amaterial having a configuration conforming to the configuration of saidabsorbent material, thE transverse dimensions of said inner shield aregreater than the corresponding dimensions of said absorbent material,and the peripheral portion of said inner shield is wrapped around theperipheral edge of said absorbing material and attached to saidabsorbent material to form a unitary structure.
 9. A protector inaccordance with claim 6, wherein said inner shield overlaps said oneside of said absorbent material, said overlap is secured to saidabsorbent material to form a unitary structure, and said one side ofsaid pad on which said overlap is secured is secured to said backing.10. A protector in accordance with claim 6, wherein said inner shield issecured to said pad on the side opposite from said backing along lineswhich extend transversely of one another.
 11. A protector in accordancewith claim 10, wherein said lines along which said absorbent material issecured to said inner shield extend diagonally of said absorbentmaterial.
 12. A protector in accordance with claim 10, wherein saidlines along which said inner shield is secured to said absorbentmaterial define a smaller angle with respect to the lengthwise axis ofsaid pad than other lines securing said backing to said pad.
 13. Aprotector in accordance with claim 1, wherein said backing comprises asubstantially moisture-proof sheet material defining a barrier betweensaid pad and the wearer''s garment to prevent perspiration from comingin contact with the wearer''s garment.
 14. A protector in accordancewith claim 1, wherein said pad is generally ovular in configuration, andsaid backing includes a central support portion having a configurationwhich generally conforms to the configuration of said pad such that saidprotector conforms generally to the shape of the arm pit of the wearer.